Do you love me?
by Cougrl12
Summary: When 2 titans have feelings for each other and won't admit it, how will things turn out? Especially when one is kidnapped!
1. Not all is as it seems

I'm not sure if you knew this, but I have no rights to these characters and am not affiliated in any way with the people who created the Teen Titans. I know it's such big shocker isn't it? Well thought I'd say that so I don't get sued or whatever….anyway on with the show…story!

* * *

"Booyah!" exclaimed Cyborg, who had beaten Beast Boy at yet another match of their favorite video game. They were sitting on the cushy couch in the Titan's Tower living room, in front of the giant screen TV.

"Man not again!" wailed the green changeling. "You must be cheatin' or something."

"No way man," said Cyborg "I'm just too good for you."

"Why I outta just-" fumed Beast Boy, half rising from his seat.

"Could you two be any nosier?" asked Raven,who had just walked in on the pair now shouting at each other.

"Sorry Rae," said Beast Boy blushing slightly as he sat down. He glared icily at Cyborg before asking "wanna race again?"

"You're on!" shouted Cyborg, and the two were playing once again. Raven was in the kitchen filling a mug with hot water for her tea when Robin and Starfire rushed in. The two had been going out for some time now and everyone agreed that they made a good couple. It had taken them a while to admit their true feelings for each other but when they did, it was a happy moment for all the titans.

"Friends!" shouted Starfire from the doorway."We received an urgent message just moments ago and our help is needed!"

"An urgent message?" asked Cyborg jumping up from the couch along with Beast Boy. Raven, forgetting about her tea, jogged over to the rest of the titans to hear what was being said.

"Yea, a civilian just called to say that the HIVE kidswere robbing another bank and we should get over there soon." said Robin, picking up where Starfire left off.

"Really, a civilian?" questioned Beast Boy as the team headed for the garage. "Isn't it usually the mayor or police chief who calls?"

"I thought it was odd too but that doesn't really matter now." replied Robin,who was now on the stairs. "This mission is pretty routine, so we should be back in time to go down to the video store for some movies."

"Alright!" squealed Beast Boy. "Wicked Scary 3 just came out and I so want to see it!" Everyone rolled their eyes at this as they too started down the stairs. "Hey Raven!" Beast Boy called jogging over to her. "Do uh, you want to ride in the T-Car with Cyborg and me?" he asked innocently enough.

"No thanks Beast Boy," she replied "I'd rather fly." And with that she took off.

"Of course you would." mumbled Beast Boy climbing into the car. He'd been trying for ages now to get Raven to notice him, and all his attempts had blown up in his face. Beast Boy knew it was strange, but quite some time ago he'd come to the conclusion that he was falling in love with Raven. But as luck would have it, he wasn't sure if Raven had the same feelings for him. He was afraid if he told her outright she would reject him, and their friendship would never be the same again. So he kept his mouth shut about his feelings and prayed his subtle hints every now and then would clue in Raven to how he was feeling. Little did Beast Boy know, Raven had the same feelings for him as he did for her. She also knew how Beast Boy felt, being an empath and all. But she held back from telling him about this. But not because of her emotions. Raven didn't have to worry about them running amok anymore since last year they had finally managed to defeat Trigon for good. No, unlike Beast Boy the only thing holding back Raven was fear. The fear of the unknown, of what would happen if she and Beast Boy actually ended up dating. It scared her to think how it would leave her if she allowed herself to love Beast Boy, wholly and deeply, then lose him to the dangers that they faced on a daily basis. She knew she would be helpless, defenseless and unable to access her powers because of the pain and heartache she would be feeling (even though Raven didn't need to keep her emotions in check anymore, her powers are still emotionally driven). And having had to suppress her emotions her entire life, Raven didn't think she knew how to love, and that scared her most of all.

"I can't think about this right now. I need to focus on the mission." she whispered to herself. She was flying high above Jump City, a little behind Starfire. She could see Robin below riding his R-Cycle and the T-Car carrying Beast Boy and Cyborg right behind him. They all stopped in front of the Jump City First Bank and saw that the HIVE kids were indeed robbing the bank, and oddly enough the police weren't anywhere in sight.

"Huh," said Starfire looking around "this is most odd. Where are the police of Jump City?"

"I don't know Star," said Robin "but all I wanna think about is how I'm gonna take them down. Titans, go!" he shouted and the team rushed onto the scene. But unbeknownst to the Titans, their real enemy tonight wasn't the HIVE kids, but the one they were working for. He was lurking in the shadows, watching the scene unfold.

"Oh yes Titans, soon you'll see," he crooned, "I'll have my revenge and Jump City will be mine for the taking!" And with that he fled down the alley, waiting for the precise moment to put his plan into action and watch the chaos ensue.


	2. The Capture

The battle was going well...for the HIVE kids that is. The titans didn't realize when they entered this battle how prepared the HIVE children were going to be, and with the unexpected arrival of Cinderblock things were turning sour fast. Robin took on Mammoth, throwing a few of his bird-a-rangs in hopes that they would hit the gargantuan villian. When this didn't seem to do the trick, Robin flipped out his Bo-Staff and proceeded to whack Mammoth incessantly hard with it but Mammoth had managed to land a solid punch to Robin's abdomen and he went flying backwards. Cinderblock was throwing punches at Cyborg, who managed to get a few good shots in, but unfortunately for Cyborg it wasn't enough and Cinderblock easily flung him over to where Robin was laying. Starfire was hurtling green starbolts as fast as she could at Gizmo who only yawned from under the protective shield he was wearing.

"Is that all you got nose wipe?" he taunted still looking bored.

"It is you who is the nose wipe!" Starfire bellowed, enraged because her attack didn't seem to be doing any harm to Gizmo.

"Yea, well we'll see about that." replied Gizmo sneering as he took out what looked like a deadly weapon. He was about to fire, when out of nowhere Beast Boy charged Gizmo in his T-Rex form, causing Gizmo to pitch forward through the air into a plexi-glass window bouncing off and tumbling onto the ground, unconscious.

"Thank you friend Beast Boy!" Starfire screeched happily.

"Ah don't mention it." he said reverting back to his human form. "C'mon let's help the others." he said with a little larger ego than he had to begin with, and he and Starfire raced over to help Robin and Cyborg.

* * *

"C'mon Raven, is that all you got?" taunted Jinx. She and Raven were currently dueling and they seemed to be pretty evenly matched. Furious, Raventhrew more of her mystical black bolts, pausing every few second to shield herself from Jinx's hexes and pink lightning. She was so enthralled with the match that she didn't realize that they were slowly moving away from the bank and down a dark deserted alley. "Now Raven you can do better than that!" tsked Jinx with a motherly tone.

"I'll show you, you pink haired creep!" Raven shouted, then began chanting her mantra. "Azarath Metrion Zin-" she started but was stopped short when she heard a familiar voice behind her say

"Hello Raven." She turned around and gasped at who she saw.

"You! Why are you here?" she asked breathless, but at the same time astonished and fearful.

"To get my revenge." He stated simply, and before Raven knew what was happening she was shot with some kind of tranquilizer dart in the shoulder. The pain was instant and white hot. She cried out right before sinking to her knees as the darkness began closing in. "Good night Raven," he said softly, as she collapsed onto the cold pavement, fully unconscious. He stared at her for a minute before commenting "revenge is so sweet, wouldn't you agree Jinx?" He ripped Raven's communicator off her cloak and smashed it into tiny pieces on the concrete.

"Oh yeah, really sweet." she said not really knowing what he was getting revenge for, only that she was getting paid big bucks for this operation. They walked away, letting one of the numerous henchmen pick Raven up to take her back to their hideout, where the real revenge could begin.


	3. The Realization

Sorry for such a long hiatus…I've been having some family difficulties and a case of writer's block... well on to the chapter! Hope y'all like it!

* * *

The battle ended strangely when a now conscious Gizmo as well as Cinderblock and Mammoth fled the scene with none of their robbery cash in tow. 

"Ooook," said Beast Boy "so we won that battle, right?" Starfire nodded her head vigorously.

"What happened to Jinx?" Cyborg asked, surveying the damage.

"Who cares?" replied Beast Boy, eager to go home and play some more of his video games.

"I do," said a grim sounding Robin. "Doesn't anyone think it's weird that the Hive kids and Cinderblock just decided to flee like that? And that Jinx disappeared during the middle of the fight?"

"Guys," Beast Boy said with a look of dread dawning on his face. "Where's Raven?" They all looked at each other wide eyes filled with dismay and alarm.

"Split up," announced Robin with a fearful tone to his voice. "We need to find her." Starfire and Robin took the west and south and Cyborg and Beast Boy took the north and east.

"_Oh God where is she?_" thought a panic stricken Beast Boy. "_What if she's hurt or scared or...oh God._" Beast Boy couldn't even contemplate all the horrible possibilities running through his head.

"Don't worry man," said a much calmer Cyborg. "We'll find her." He could see Beast Boy visibly shaking and he'd broken out in a cold sweat.

"I can't help it Cy." Beast Boy said. "If anything happens to her…I don't know what I'll do."

"Well first man," Cyborg said, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder "You gotta relax. You're not much of a help when you're like this."

"Ok, I'll try" Beast Boy said, taking deep breaths in and out. "Thanks Cyborg."

"No prob." replied Cyborg. They walked for a bit, calling Raven's name and checking all of the dark alleyways and street corners that they couldn't see from the main streets, with Cyborg walking in front of Beast Boy. Cyborg suddenly stopped walking and calling Raven's name, which caused a still yelling Beast Boy to walk straight into his back.

"Dude, what the…" but he was cut short when Cyborg pointed down and Beast Boy saw the smashed communicator and the tiny dart.

"Robin," Cyborg called into his communicator "I think we found something."

"We're on our way," replied Robin. Beast Boy was in shock and couldn't form words to speak. What did this evidence mean? Where was Raven?

"You alright BB?" Cyborg asked uncertainly. Beast Boy looked like he was going to shatter any moment.

"Yeah," he said in a wavering voice "I, I think so."

"Be strong man, we'll find her soon I promise." Cyborg said hoping Beast Boy wasn't going to fall to pieces on him. Beast Boy didn't reply but he did dry his watering eyes as Robin and Starfire approached.

"What did you find?" asked Robin with a authoritative tone.

"Look," Cyborg said pointing. Robin and Starfire both gasped.

"Oh friend Cyborg what does this mean for friend Raven?" Starfire asked sounding worried.

"I dunno Star, but it's not anything good." Cyborg saidsolemnly. Robin crouched down to take a better look at the dart and frowned.

"Take a look at that insignia on the side of this dart," "what is that?" he asked standing back up, holding the dart. Cyborg took it from him and peered closely.

"That's an 'S'," Cyborg muttered, astonished. He looked up and said "You don't think it could be S-"

"I do," announced Robin. "It's Slade."

"That son of a bitch!" roared Beast Boy. The rest of the team was momentarily silenced, for they had never heard such and outburst from the kind, happy go lucky Beast Boy before.

"Please friend Beast Boy calm down," said Starfire in a gentle tone. "All will be well soon enough, but I think that we should finish discussing this matter in our own home and not on this street at this time of night."

"Star's right BB" Cyborg said "Come on I'll give you a lift." He took the shocked and disoriented Beast Boy to the car while the others followed gravely.


	4. Sorrow and Despair

Raven slowly opened her eyes. "_Ugh_," she thought, sighing. She felt out of sorts and her head was fuzzy, like someone had stuffed it with wet cotton. "_think come on, what happened?" _Her head cleared a little and her thoughts came rushing back like a giant tide. She remembered all at once the battle with the HIVE kids and Cinderblock, her fight with Jinx, and the unexpected arrival of Slade and his stupid darts.

Raven scanned the room she was in. It was fairly small, with dark, dank looking walls. It had a depressed, dreary feeling to it, devoid of hope and it made Raven shiver. To the left she saw some kind of hallway and figured that was where Slade was hiding out, keeping tabs on her and the team. The room had an odor that distinctly smelled like a combination of rotting fish and decayed corpses. "Oh man," she wheezed "I think I'm gonna be sick." She tried to bring her hand up to cover her nose from the horrendous stench, when she realized she couldn't. Her hands were snugly cuffed in shackles and chained to a wall that allowed very little room to maneuver her arms. Her ankles were also cuffed and chained to the wall. "_He thinks these can stop me?" _Raven wondered, then shouted "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" she watched as the shackles were suddenly engulfed in her usual black auras. Then suddenly the shackles went from having black auras to developing red ones. "Wha-" she said but never finished her sentence, because at that same moment the chains became intensely hot and started to scorch her flesh. Raven let out a cry of agony, then as suddenly as the burning started, it stopped. "Ok this is new," she panted trying to catch her breath. "Why won't my powers work on these chains?"

"Well obviously Raven because they were specifically made to repel powers like yours," said a voice. She looked up to see Slade walking in from the hallway with a smug expression on his face. "You should've figured that out by now."

"_Oh great, that means I can't get out, I can't do anything, I'm stuck."_ She felt a thread of fear snake through her stomach, but was able to keep a calm composure.

"Slade," she hissed "you're gonna pay for this."

"Oh will I dear Raven?" he said walking towards her. "Because I think I've already won."

"You're insane you freak!" she nearly yelled. He staggered closer yet, so close in fact that Raven could smell his putrid breath and see the evil emanating from his eyes.

"You aren't really in a position to be saying things like that, are you Raven?" Slade said in a low voice, "What about being thankful I haven't killed you yet? Being grateful isn't too hard for you is it?" He reached out to stroke Raven's face, disgusted, she spat at him, and it hit him squarely in the cheek. Slade's calm countenance changed in an instant to one of rage, and a very angry man. He slapped Raven so hard across the face that blood ran from the corner of her mouth.

"Now then," he said wiping his face, looking a little more under control "I guess I should go inform your team of my plan." And with that he walked away. He was almost to the hall when she heard him say "I'll leave Jinx here to fill you in." That's when Raven noticed Jinx who had been standing in the shadows of the room. "Have fun." Slade whispered into Jinx's ear and walked out.

"Oh believe me, I will." She murmured.

* * *

Back at the Titan's Tower, people weren't acting as calmly as Slade and Jinx were. Everyone had congregated in the living room for an emergency meeting. It had been several hours since Raven's kidnap and all the Titans looked worse for wear. Beast Boy looked like he was going to have a heart attack any second. He had broken out in a cold sweat and the soles of his shoes were being worn thin by all his incessant pacing. Robin had bags under his eyes and kept rubbing his forehead. Starfire was slouched over on the couch and her eyes didn't contain their usual brightness and sparkle that they usually did. Cyborg…well being half robot and all his body didn't show the usual signs of stress, but he was frowning a lot. 

"What are we waiting for?" shouted Beast Boy "Let's go find Slade!"

"Knowing Slade Beast Boy he'll contact us soon." Robin explained. No one argued with this because everyone knew Robin was an expert where Slade was concerned.

"It's just so hard sitting around waiting while Raven is out there, and God knows what's happening to her." Beast Boy said sighing and sitting down by Starfire.

"This is a difficult moment for us all friend Beast Boy, but we must be strong for friend Raven."

"Thanks Star," said Beast Boy with a half smile"I'll try."

Suddenly Slade's face appeared on the Titan's giant screen. He was sitting in some sort of lounge chair looking particularly calm and collected. "Hello Titans," he said "miss me?"

"Where's Raven?" Beast Boy asked, his voice dangerously low, almost sounding like a growl.

"Well, what's this? No 'Hello Slade nice to see you? How have you been?' Your manners really have declined since our last meeting."

"Where is Raven Slade, tell us!" Robin practically yelled.

"See for yourself." he said and the screen switched from Slade's face to that of a darkened room. It was hard to see at first, but as they looked harder they could make out a small mass hanging in the corner. They knew it was Raven. They looked even closer at the screen and realized with horrifying clarity how bad of shape Raven was in. The damage inflicted on her was substantial. She had many cuts and scrapes varying in all size all over her body. Her face had multiple bruises and cuts and she had a particularly large gash over her right eye that was seeping blood. Her bottom lip was mashed up and swollen. Blood trickled slowly from her left ear and a corner of her mouth. Her clothes were torn and in some places practically hanging off her body. Her stomach was all slashed up, like she had been sliced by shards of glass. Her hair was matted and the hem of her cape was dampened and dirty. Raven wasn't conscious and the only thing holding her up were the chains, which were doing an adequate job of supporting her.

Beast Boy and the other Titans looked at Raven with expressions of despair, horror and shock. Starfire was crying openly and clutching Robin, who held her in a strong embrace. Tears were forming under Robin's mask and were beginning to trickle down his face. Cyborg collapsed onto the couch with his face in his hands and just kept shaking his head. Beast Boy was in agony. He stood there in the middle of the room in shock, his emotions ranging from disbelief, to sadness, then finally to anger.

"Why?" he screamed jumping off the couch in a rage to look at Slade, who had once again appeared on the screen. "Why the hell are you torturing her you bastard?"

"Well Beast Boy, I'm surprised you don't know. Considering it's your fault."

"WHAT?" they all shouted at the same time.

"You mean you don't know?" Slade asked mockingly. "I'll tell you what. I'll give you three days in which to figure out why it's Beast Boy's fault and to come and rescue her. Maybe you'll figure it out. Maybe you won't. If you don't then well…what a tragic loss it will be for all of you. Until then." He clicked off the screen and left the Titans wondering how Beast Boy could possibly be responsible and if they'd figure it out and get Rave home…alive.


	5. Holding out hope

Raven wasn't doing so well. When she regained consciousness, every second was constant agony. Her body felt like it was on fire. Her vision was blurry and her stomach lurched. Raven's head was throbbing and pulsating from Jinx's constant punches and kicks and it felt like the rest of her was flayed open and embedded with hot embers. Thankfully most of her wounds had stopped bleeding and the only remnants of them even being there was the stinging and dried up blood. Her breathing was also normal again. After taking some finely tuned martial arts roundhouse kicks to the chest and abdomen, Raven had started wheezing and sputtering. By that point death would have been a pleasant alternative, but she settled for the blissful darkness that came shortly after having the living hell beat out of her. Raven couldn't help but tear up thinking about what Jinx had done to her and how helpless she had felt without her powers. It had taken all her will not to break down during her beating. She couldn't hold the tears back any longer. With her head hanging on her chest, she started openly sobbing. Why hadn't her friends found her yet? Surely they knew that she was missing, and they must've known by now that Slade was behind the whole thing, so where were they? Raven knew she couldn't stay like this for much longer and that if her friends didn't find her soon she'd be in some serious trouble. She started thinking about all her memories with the titans, her friends, her family of sorts. How happy they were together during the good times and the bad, how they stuck together no matter what. Thinking about her friends in this way made Raven cry even harder. And Beast Boy. Would she ever see him again? The love of her life?

_"Oh Beast Boy," _she thought _"if I make it out of here alive, I swear I'll tell you everything, my feelings for you, how much I really do like your silly jokes, how much I care about what you feel, and how I really, truly do love you and always will." _Picturing Beast Boy in her mind's eye made Raven's crying quiet a little, but it was soon replaced by a frustration that made her scream.

"Where are my friends?"

* * *

The Titans weren't having much luck figuring out how Beast Boy could possibly be responsible for Raven's abduction, but they were zeroing in on Slade's hideout location. 

"How could Slade say that?" Beast Boy fumed, pacing the living room floor again "How could he think I'm responsible?"

"I don't know Beast Boy but we'll figure it out." Robin said, now working on his laptop on the couch, seated next to Starfire who looked as fragile as ever clutching Robin's arm, which made it increasingly harder for him to type. Cyborg had his locater device turned on via the big screen TV and had been scanning Jump City for at least an hour, looking for any possible sign of Slade. Beast Boy kept going over and over all the possibilities in his mind, as to why Slade would blame him. So far he hadn't come up with any possibilities that made sense. Sure, he'd battled Slade before and that would obviously make him mad, but so had the other Titans. Why was he singling him out? Did it have to do with Terra? Was Slade angry enough over Beast Boy and Terra's friendship, and then losing his apprentice, that he'd abduct Raven to get back at him? No that was ludicrous. Robin was Slade's apprentice once and he hadn't singled Robin out...well not like he was doing to Beast Boy now.

"This is so complicated!" Beast Boy cried "I can't think of any plausible reasons for Slade to be targeting Raven because of me!"

"It is most odd," remarked Starfire from her place on the couch "why is Slade so angry at friend Beast Boy and not the rest of us?"

"There's gotta be some connection between you two, I just haven't figured it out yet," said Robin looking at his screen intently "think harder Beast Boy, did you do something, anything at all that could have triggered Slade to do something like this?"

"Man," Beast Boy said, exasperated "I've thought about this over and over, and I can't think of anything, _anything! _that would be helpful."

"Then we'll just have to keep doing what we're doing," Robin said, sighing. "My computer search isn't turning up anything that relates you two besides the obvious, which I'm pretty sure isn't the reason Slade's after you."

"Maybe we should all go to bed and rest for a while? We'll be more alert and apt to help find friend Raven on a good night's sleep." Starfire announced, getting off the couch.

"Maybe Starfire's right Beast Boy, let's hit the sack and start searching for Raven tomorrow with fresh eyes." Robin said, also standing up to follow Starfire out.

"Are you guys crazy?" Beast Boy shouted "Didn't you see what they did to her? She's being tortured for goodness sakes and you want to sleep?"

"We can't do anything right now Beast Boy, we don't know where she is!" Robin shouted back. "Don't make the mistake of thinking you're the only one here who cares about Raven Beast Boy, we all do!"

"Guys-" Cyborg said

"Yeah well at least I'm not giving up so easily!" "I won't sleep until I know she's safe, which at the moment she isn't!"

"Guys-" Cyborg said a little louder.

"Friend Robin is right friend Beast Boy, there's nothing we can do at the moment for friend Raven. I too feel pain at the thought of Raven not being safe, but we are no use to her when we cannot function normally."

"Well excuse me Starfire, but at the moment it doesn't seem like you care one bit about how Raven's doing! It seems like I'm the only one who hasn't given up on her!" Beast Boy cried.

"Now what just a minute Beast Boy-" Robin said sternly holding a now crying Starfire in his arms.

"GUYS!" Cyborg shouted.

"WHAT!" They screamed, glaring at Cyborg.

"I know where Slade is."


	6. A bold decision

Beast Boy was laying in his bed. Sighing, he flipped onto his back and put his arm under his head. He couldn't sleep; he knew he wouldn't. Not while Raven was out there. Alone. Afraid. Hurt. But he had convinced the other Titans that he'd try to get a little rest. It wasn't happening. He kept seeing Raven in his mind's eye tortured and hanging uselessly on that wall. Beast Boy was so angry at his team for not rushing off to Raven's rescue the moment they knew where she was. Robin made some excuse about coming up with a plan of action and Starfire kept babbling on about how important sleep was to properly function. He was wide awake and functioning now! Beast Boy punched his pillow then crawled out of his bed.

"_Screw the others,_" he thought. He was going to rescue Raven tonight whether they approved or not. Beast Boy knew he should wait for the rest of the team but he was thinking straight. He was only thinking of Raven and how much it would hurt if he lost her.

"God, Raven please hold on." he whispered to himself. He changed into his jeans and a tee shirt and a pair of trusty sneakers, then slowly walked to his door and cracked it open. He peered down the hall but he didn't really expect any of the other titans to be in the hallway, with the big fuss they made about sleep and all, but it paid to be safe. Beast Boy tiptoed down to the living room and picked up a scrap of paper on the coffee table where Cyborg had jotted down the location of Slade's hideout before he turned off his locater device. He studied the information on the paper until he had it memorized then he crept to the front door. Beast Boy sighed, and turned to face the living room.

"_Sorry guys_," he thought , opening the door "_I just couldn't wait_." and with that he changed his shape into that of a bat and took off into the night.

* * *

Raven was exhausted both physically and emotionally. The ordeal she had suffered at Jinx's hands had left her drained of her strength and she could barely support herself. Her wrists and ankles had been rubbed raw by the manacles. They were so tight that her hands and feet had gone numb. And Raven was left with nothing more to do than think. All she could think about were her friends. Especially Beast Boy. It made her both happy and sad to think about him. About his goofy smile and big, bright eyes. The way he teased her relentlessly with his silly jokes. She loved it when he did that. But would she ever get the chance to tell him? A single tear trailed down her cheek and Raven closed her eyes at the onslaught of anguish that rolled through her.

"Crying are we Raven? I thought you were braver than that," Slade said snidely strolling into the room.

"Go to hell," Raven said coldly enunciating each word.

"My, my what a temper we have," remarked Slade now standing in front of her.

"Leave me alone," Raven growled, glaring at Slade through slitted eyes.

"I see Jinx hasn't broken your spirit with her little 'welcoming gift' maybe I should tell her to try harder next time."

"Go ahead," Raven taunted, partly because she wanted to show Slade that she wasn't afraid. Showing your fear to Slade was like offering yourself to a pack of lions. Another part of her, a very small part, just didn't give a damn whether she lived or not, she was just so tired of it all. All the suspense of waiting to see if she'd be rescued, whether she'd see her friends again, and whether Slade was going to torture her again. It was just so exhausting waiting to see what would happen that Raven had all but given up. The only thing that kept her going was the hope of seeing Beast Boy again. To tell him her feelings and to finally be truthful with him.

"Now Raven you want to be awake when your beloved arrives don't you?" Slade asked with a smirk.

"What?" she said, her heartbeat picking up speed. "What do you mean?"

"Oh maybe I should have mentioned that earlier. Beast Boy is coming here. Tonight." Slade said now with a cold sneer on his lips. He was lying, it couldn't be true could it?

"How do you know?" Raven asked fearful of the answer.

"I have my ways Raven, spies who are willing to do anything for me, for what I pay them," He couldn't help himself from telling her, "the police chief, for example is one of my very best spies," Raven gasped,

"So that's why there were no police at that bank, they were never informed because the police chief works for you!"

"Very good Raven," Slade crooned " and with the police chief's power I have unlimited access to everything in this city, I can be everywhere at once. That's how I know Beast Boy is coming here tonight. He was spotted by the police chief himself flying around in this general vicinity. He should be here at anytime."

"Why did you call him 'my beloved'?" Raven had to know how he could have learned something like that, something so secret. Slade chuckled to himself as if it was his own private joke.

"Beast Boy is such a pathetic creature," he told her before going on. "a hopeless romantic and a terrible poet."

"Huh?" she said out of puzzlement. Raven was really confused.

"A short while ago I had Beast Boy's journal stolen right out from under his nose," Slade said.

"How?" she wondered. Raven remembered Beast Boy asking around the tower a while ago if anyone had seen his journal, but she had just assumed that he had misplaced it.

"Wonderful thing about having a spy who's a cop," he said "they can go anywhere they please and not look suspicious. I'm sure you remember the chief paying you a visit not too long ago." He was right! The police chief had paid them a visit, saying he didn't drop by often enough to see his "favorite Titans". And he did pay more attention than usual to Beast Boy, wanting to see his room and everything. This thrilled Beast Boy to no end, and he gave him the grand tour. Beast Boy was so pumped after the chief left saying what a cool guy he was, and how he had promised they would go bowling sometime. The next day when Beast Boy was searching for his journal, no one had thought the chief had taken it. Who would? The idea was ridiculous, unless of course you knew that the chief was working for Slade. Then it was different.

"Anyway," Slade continued "when I read the journal, I found the entire thing to be filled with love poems and sonnets all about you Raven. About how your hair glistens in the sunlight, how your smile brightens up the darkest of rooms, how your laugh makes him happy, there's even a poem about how you walk for God's sake! It's enough to make me sick!" But Raven was anything but sickened, she was touched. To know that Beast Boy took the time to notice all the little details about her then wrote them down in poems made her heart warm.

"After reading it, I realized you were his most 'prized possession' and devised a plan to kidnap you. Which turned out beautifully by the way."

"But why?" Raven asked. "Why would you want to hurt Beast Boy?" she was still confused over his reasoning to want to hurt Beast Boy in the first place. Slade stepped closer and cupped her cheek.

"That," he whispered "shall be revealed soon. In the mean time dear Raven you are to play the part of the lure." Raven's eyes widened.

"Oh yes Raven, the first thing Beast Boy will see when he enters the room is you, hanging here like a rag doll, and like the sap he his, he'll run to your rescue, while I'm here waiting in the shadows.

"Please, don't," Raven whispered, frightened now for Beast Boy. Suddenly they both heard a tremendous crash come from down the hall.

"Too late Raven," Slade said "I think I hear him now," Raven listened and she could make out the quiet scuffle of sneakers on the floor.

"_Please God not Beast Boy,_" she thought desperately. But she knew it was him come to save her.

"Oh and just so we don't have you yelling out a warning-" Slade said, then suddenly he drew back his fist and punched Raven in the stomach. She let out a gasp and started to wheeze.

"That should take care of the problem," he said, then pulled out a tranquilizer gun from the waistband of his pants and ducked back into the dark recesses of the room.

"_Oh Beast Boy_," she thought sadly, tears running down her face in twin streams "_I'm so sorry._"


	7. Trapped

Beast Boy crash landed into a pile of junk in Slade's hide out, hurting one of his shoulders.

"Oh man," Beast Boy whispered, rubbing his left shoulder, "I really should learn that gravity is not something to mess with."

Beast Boy stood up and took in his surroundings. He saw above him the skylight that he had so conveniently flown into and, making in error in judgment, had changed into human form too early causing him to fall nearly 5 feet into a pile of rubbish. He seemed to be in some sort of a hallway, with large foreboding walls and a spacious walkway. The hall was dimly lit and casting eerie shadows on his figure making him seem almost grotesque. To his left he saw the hallway extend into what seemed like eternity. Where the light stopped, the black continued making it look like one giant chasm of darkness.

"I think I'd better go right," he said hoping that Slade wasn't keeping Raven on the left side of the hide out. He tip toed quietly down the hall hoping no one could hear him. Thoughts kept rushing through his head like flies and it seemed like Beast Boy couldn't stop them.

_"What if this isn't where they are? What if Slade moved Raven? How would I find her? What if..."_

"Keep it together Beast Boy," he whispered to himself "Raven is counting on you and you won't be any help if you can't keep it together now, after all you've done to get here tonight."

With that final thought, Beast Boy tip toed the rest of way down the hall in silence, not speaking or thinking. As Beast Boy was scuffling along, he smelt the most horrible thing imaginable. It was all he could do to not throw up there, the smell was that bad. Covering his face and holding back the gagging reflex in the back of his throat, he continued on. Near the end of the hall, Beast Boy saw some kind of doorway. The doorway was in an arched shaped and inside he saw a tiny room that looked like it had had all the cheeriness sucked out of it. It was very dark which made it nearly impossible to see everywhere in the room, but he could make out the distinct figure of a person hanging on the wall.

"Raven," Beast Boy whispered. His heart started pounding and he could hear the rush of blood in his ears. He took a tentative step toward the room, then another, then another. Beast Boy knew that he should be careful and look out for Slade and others, but all he could see in his path of vision was Raven. He had finally found her! Beast Boy's heart swelled and he couldn't contain his excitement any longer. He ran the rest of the way to Raven.

"Raven!" Beast Boy shouted, "Raven can you hear me?" He was excited and scared all at the same time. He was so glad to have finally found Raven, but at the same time afraid because of the possibility of what he might find.

"Raven?" Beast Boy took a step closer to her and the light from the hallway reflected onto Raven's body hanging there on the wall, showing Beast Boy the true extent of her injuries.

"Oh Raven," he said sadly, his eyes filling with tears "what did they do to you?"

"Beast...Boy," Raven said raggedly because she was still slightly out of breath from her latest injury, "it's a...trap...get...out."

"I could never leave you Raven," Beast Boy said "not now, not ever." He brushed the tears away from Raven's eyes which were now falling freely.

"Please don't cry Raven, I'll get you out of here, I will!" Beast Boy was sure of it, he just needed to figure out a way to get her off this wall.

"Beast Boy...please!" Raven pleaded, frantic now for Beast Boy's safety.

"Raven I-" Beast Boy started but Raven interrupted him.

"Behind...you!" Her eyes were as large as saucers and Beast Boy couldn't think of any other time he had seen her that scared, but he didn't have much time to think. As soon as he turned around, Slade pulled the trigger on the gun and hit Beast Boy squarely in the chest causing instant agony. Beast Boy let out a cry of pain and sank to his knees. The last thing he heard before succumbing to the dark abyss of unconsciousness were Raven's quiet sobs and Slade saying

"Welcome to the party Beast Boy."

* * *

Robin slowly opened his eyes. Something was up, he could feel it. Groaning, he kicked off the blankets covering him and jumped out of bed. There it was again, that niggling sense in the back of his brain that told him something was seriously not right.

"_What's wrong?" _He wondered.

Shaking off his feelings as nothing more than nerves about their obvious situation, Robin got dressed and went down to the kitchen to get some breakfast and to meet the other Titans to come up with a plan to save Raven. In the kitchen he saw Starfire and Cyborg quietly nibbling on pieces of burnt toast. They looked up when he walked in, both had anxious expressions on their faces and dark circles under their eyes.

"You guys didn't sleep either, did you?" Robin asked. They both shook their heads. Heaving a sigh, Robin made a move for the orange juice and sat down next to Starfire.

"What are we going to do about friend Raven?" Starfire asked worriedly. She picked up a napkin and began twisting it in her hands so the other Titans wouldn't see her shaking.

"Man, we need to think of something and something fast," Cyborg said, taking a large bite out of his toast and grimacing at the burnt taste.

"We'll start talking once Beast Boy gets down here." Robin said taking a large swallow of juice.

"Is he still sleeping? I would imagine he would be the first down here." Starfire remarked oddly, looking for signs of Beast Boy in the living room.

Robin's odd feelings returned full force and he shot out of his chair.

"Beast Boy!" he exclaimed as the other Titans looked at him. He made a mad dash out of the kitchen with Starfire and Cyborg on his tail. He rounded a corner almost losing his balance and came to a stop outside of Beast Boy's bedroom door.

"Beast Boy," Robin panted, out of breath "Beast Boy!" He pounded on the door a couple times with his fist. There was no noise from the other side of the door.

"What's wrong with friend Beast Boy, Robin?" Starfire asked with concern.

"I'm not sure Star, give me a minute," Robin said, and with mighty shoulder slam, opened Beast Boy's door. The Titans entered Beast Boy's room and quickly looked to his bed. A mass of tangled blankets and an indented pillow were the only signs that Beast Boy had been there the night before.

"Oh that's just great," Cyborg said "the little idiot went out on his own to get Raven!" He punched one of the bedposts out of frustration.

Starfire went to Robin and embraced him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and returned the hug, all the while thinking

"_I knew something was wrong! Please God don't let Beast Boy be in trouble too."_


	8. The Party Begins

Groaning, Beast Boy slowly opened his eyes. He felt awful, his chest ached from where Slade had shot him and he had developed one wallop of a headache. He blinked several times and shook his head, trying to clear his mind of the drugs that had rendered him unconscious. He still felt groggy and a little out of it, but was able to think a bit clearer. Beast Boy lifted his head slightly and surveyed the room he was in. To his right and left he saw stone walls where, not surprisingly, his wrists were cuffed inside iron shackles. He looked down and saw that his ankles were also cuffed. 

_"Great," _Beast Boy thought "_I'm stuck, just like Raven. Raven!" _His mind screamed. He brought his head farther up and saw that Raven was on the wall directly in front of him. At first glance she looked to be sleeping , with her head bowed, but upon further inspection Beast Boy could see her red and puffy eyes were open, staring absently at the ground. Looking around the room Beast Boy couldn't see any sign of Slade so he tried calling to Raven.

"Raven!" Beast Boy said quietly, hoping not to alert Slade to the fact that he was awake. "Raven, can you hear me?"

"Beast Boy?" she said sniffling and raising her head. "Beast Boy! Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, how long have I been out of it?" he asked.

"A long time, I think it's sometime in the morning but I can't be sure." She looked around the room as if this would help her determine the time, then she thought of something. "Beast Boy do you have your communicator?" He thought for a moment, then realized with a sinking feeling that in his rush to get to Raven he had left it sitting on his desk in his room.

"No I don't," he said miserably, "I'm sorry Raven, how are you? Are you in a lot of pain?" Beast Boy suddenly became enraged thinking of Raven and the torture she had endured at the hands of Slade. He balled his fists momentarily then willed himself to calm down and listen to Raven.

"It's not too bad, nothing that won't heal over time." She thought a minute then asked, "Beast Boy where are the other Titans?"

"Well they're probably still at the Tower thinking of a way to rescue you. I came on my own." he said ruefully. _"I really screwed up by not waiting,"_ he thought _"now look where I am, just as __helpless as Raven." _Beast Boy sighed and looked at his feet. "Some rescue huh?" But then he thought of an idea, and suddenly looked up at Raven.

"Hey Raven! I think I could turn into large animal and snap these chains!" Beast Boy became excited by this idea so he didn't hear Raven when she frantically shouted no, but proceeded to turn into an elephant. The iron cuffs suddenly turned a violent shade of red and in the middle of Beast Boy's transformation he turned back into a human. Grimacing in pain he looked at his wrists and could make out angry red welts contrasting his green skin.

"Beast Boy! Are you okay?" Raven asked worried.

"Yeah, but that really hurt, is this why you couldn't escape?" Raven nodded and sighed.

"These shackles were specially designed to repel magic or anything supernatural. Do you think I would still be locked up if they weren't?" Beast Boy thought about that a moment and realized that Slade would have to be pretty dumb to lock up the Teen Titans in ordinary chains. And knowing that Slade was anything but dumb, it made sense that the chains would repel their powers. This just made it harder for them to escape.

"I'm sorry Raven," he said "I should have waited, it was stupid to come here without a plan, but I couldn't help myself."

"Why didn't you wait?" she asked curious.

"Well…I just kept seeing you on that wall and all these horrible thoughts kept running through my head and I just couldn't take it, and decided that I couldn't wait and had to come after you myself." He didn't mention to her that he was also madly in love with her and that if she died he didn't think he would be able to stand the agony and grief. Raven felt touched that Beast Boy had risked his life to try and save hers.

"_He really loves me," _she thought smiling to herself. It was the first time she smiled since being captured, and it made her a little more hopeful that things were going to turn out all right, even though they looked pretty bleak at the moment. Raven was about to say something to Beast Boy when all of a sudden Slade walked into the room. His presence put a giant damper on the hope Raven was feeling and she coldly stared at him.

"Why aren't you happy to see me Raven?" Slade said, inching closer to her. He stroked her arm and whispered "I think you owe me a smile for not killing your boyfriend," she shivered and looked away. Slade grabbed Raven's chin and forced her to look at him again. "Smile for me Raven, and maybe I'll kill him quickly." She started breathing quickly and her fear for Beast Boy began to build in her chest once again.

"Leave her alone you bastard! She's innocent!" Beast Boy shouted. He became angry just seeing Slade touch Raven and thought if he couldn't rescue her then maybe he could keep Slade from hurting her again.

"Ah, I see someone is awake, hello Beast Boy how are you feeling?" Slade turned away from Raven and walked to the other side of the room to face Beast Boy.

"Just peachy," Beast Boy said with malice "but I'd feel a whole lot better if you would just let us go."

"That's something I can't do I'm afraid," Slade said wistfully "you see Beast Boy, I've waited a long time to see you and I'm not about to let you go free."

"Why do you want to see me so bad? What makes me special?" Beast Boy demanded. He had thought long and hard about why Slade had wanted him so badly since the Titans had received that cryptic message, but he still couldn't think of any reason that Slade would want him.

"Now where's the fun in me telling you Beast Boy? I'm sure you'll be able to figure it out, eventually. But for now let's have some fun, shall we?"

A cold chill went through Beast Boy's body. What did Slade mean by fun? _"Oh God,"_ he thought _"please, no, not Raven!"_

"Here's how this game works," Slade began in a chilling tone. "I ask you a question. If you get it right, nothing happens, but if you get it wrong…"

Just then, Slade held up a tool that Beast Boy hadn't noticed he was holding. It was a shiny metallic color, long and thin with sharp thorns sticking out of its sides. He walked over to Raven and tapped it lightly on her arm. Raven let out an intense scream of pain and her whole body tensed up. Her back arched and she began to make low keening noises, almost like whimpering. Eventually the noise subsided and Raven's body unclenched, but she was shaking violently and began to cry quietly once more.

"This is a creation of my own design Beast Boy," Slade said quietly walking back over to talk to him. "It's a tool which shoots a powerful venom that I created through whatever I please. I just gave Raven enough to make her incoherent for the time being. She probably won't be lucid for about half an hour. The more venom I give her, the longer she stays that way and the more intense the pain is. Now if you answer correctly, I won't have to do this anymore, but if not…well you've seen what happens."

Beast Boy was numb; he couldn't believe what he had just seen. It was his worst nightmare incarnate. The torture he'd seen inflicted on her body had been bad enough, but this? Right in front of him? Oh no, this was too much. Silently tears streaked down his cheeks and he looked up at Slade. "What kind of monster are you?" Beast Boy whispered with a strangled voice that he didn't recognize.

"The worst kind Beast Boy," Slade whispered back only inches from his face now. "Now let's get this game started."


End file.
